Grasshopper Heaven, Worker Ant Hell

Do they still tell the story of the ant and the grasshopper to school kids?
In this Aesop fable the fact that time changes conditions is illustrated, putting forth the idea that it is prudent to "make hay while the sun shines" even if there's more work than you would rather do, simply because the time may come when there is no work possible. Summer inevitably turns into winter for a while, yet one's daily needs will be the same in either case. Saving for hard times is the thing to do. Believing in spring alone won't cut it.
In our postmodern world, however, the idea of savings has been replaced by credit score. Debt is the new normal while self-sufficiency has become an outdated notion, falling by the wayside like dust on the side of the road.
In contrast with the story linked above, my experience tells me that ants usually work in groups, sometimes large ones. Furthermore, it has not escaped me that the grasshoppers have organized into unions and infiltrated the congress of lawmakers...(Read Full Post)